Update
Real and MTV are putting together a Voltron-like online retailer called Rhapsody America that would do better in battle with Apple's iTunes Music Store. The V Cast Music over-the-air service from Verizon Wireless will form the 3G-powered mobile distribution arm. Urge's GM, Michael Bloom, will run the new company.
The positioning is obvious to anyone who's watched the bloodbath of non-Apple music stores over the past few years. Urge was supposed to be Microsoft's darling, and the key to its Windows Media Player 11 and Vista music strategy. That is, until the new baby Zune came along and Urge was left playing in the road like a foster child. The Journal adds that the Verizon Wireless angle is also clear, since Apple "angered" many carriers by deciding to go exclusive with AT&T.
Branding wise, it is presumed that this will be the end of Urge, and the birth of an MTV-powered Rhapsody. We'll get you details after the 11am EST press call today.
[WS...

According to the Wall Street Journal (and to an e-mail in my inbox entitled "RealNetworks, MTV Networks and Verizon to Announce Major Partnership in Digital Music"), Real and MTV are putting together a Voltron-like online retailer that would do better in battle with Apple's iTunes Music Store. Verizon Wireless would form the 3G-powered "mobile distribution" arm.
The positioning is obvious to anyone who's watched the bloodbath of non-Apple music stores over the past few years. Urge was supposed to be Microsoft's darling, and the key to its Windows Media Player 11 and Vista music strategy. That is, until the new baby Zune came along and Urge was left playing in the road like a foster child. The Journal adds that the Verizon Wireless angle is also clear, since Apple "angered" many carriers by deciding to go exclusive with AT&T.
Branding wise, it is presumed that this will be the end of Urge, and the birth of an MTV-powered Rhapsody. We'll get you details after the 11am EST...

A big announcement in the digital music space is scheduled for Tuesday morning.
MTV scheduled a conference call for "two industry-leading partners to discuss a new digital music initiative."
MTV is one of the partners. There's a good chance the other one is in the Seattle area.
MTV already has a partnership with Microsoft. It built its Urge music store on Microsoft technology, and Microsoft bundled Urge with the current version of Windows Media Player. Even so, Urge hasn't made a splash -- or a dent in iTunes.
My guess is that MTV and Zune will announce a relationship. Apple fans may chuckle, but there are many reasons a Zune-MTV partnership would make sense.
Microsoft is gearing up to launch several new Zune players and to broaden its marketing beyond hard-core music fans. The next phase of Zune will sure be marketed through MTV and its sister channels such as Comedy Central.
Partisans may think MTV will take a coolness hit by partnering with Zune. ...

Remember those military exclusive Halo 3 Zunes? 15 of the Halo 3 Zunes already hit Ebay. I can only guess that some of the workers in the military stores or some military guys or family members are taking advantage of this exclusive offer to make a quick buck.

Our Dell Zune Dealzmodo where you could get a Black Zune for $104 seems to be totally canceled. Dell reneged on the deal because they attributed the price drop to an "internal system error," and canceled all outstanding orders of the Zune player. So if you didn't get in, don't worry about it. And if you did get in, our condolences.
Dear Valued Customer ,

This note is in reference to your recent order for a Zune MP3 Player.
Regrettably, we had to cancel your recent order for the Zune 30GB MP3 Player. Due to an internal system error, your order included discounts that should not have been applied.
We specifically indicate on our web pages, catalogs, and advertising that Dell cannot be responsible for such errors and reserves the right to cancel any orders arising from such errors. In addition, our email documentation provided to customers as they place orders contains the same statement.
We truly value our relationship and reputation wi...

The Sansa Connect Wi-Fi-enabled player we saw earlier this year is already getting a $100 price drop down to the pretty awesome price of $149. If you remember, the 4GB player lets you share your music with strangers like the Zune does, but it also lets you download unlimited Yahoo music right from the device as well. This is a pretty darn good deal now. [News.com]

Sonos announced today that their Digital Music System, which wirelessly streams music across a house, has updated to System Software 2.3 and features Sirius Satellite Radio in addition to the Pandora and Zune services. Any Sonos system connected to the internet can subscribe to Sirius, which offers music, news and talk radio. New Sirius subscriptions cost $12.95 while current Sirius subscribers can upgrade their account to work with the Sonos for an additional $2.99. A 30-day free trial is also offered in the package so you can decide if Sirius is worth the hype. We're just glad its not XM.[Sonos]

Thanks to ALPHA for this nice Halo 3 video! Let us know what you think by rating the video and commenting it on YouTube (just click the video after it is over) and post a comment in our forum here.

Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video, Wireless

It looks like Dell's undoubtedly busy webmaster has let his or her e-commerce guard slip, and if you're clever and quick enough, you should be able to bag a black 30GB Zune for the low, low price of $109 (as pictured above). According to the clever folks at Audio Junkies, if you head over to the "accessories" branch of the Dell site and follow their specific browsing instructions (which include but are not limited to adding a pink and black Zune to your cart), you should find yourself in near-possession of an alarmingly affordable Microsoft music player. The AJ crew are even kind enough to suggest using PayPal for an additional 10 percent off, just in case the price cut wasn't deep enough for you. So, if you're looking for a bargain today, you might want to quickly read the step-by-step and then motor in Dell's direction, because this won't last for long. 
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I put together a few Zune backgrounds of Jessica Alba.